English springer spaniel

English springer spaniel with long hair (most often white and brown with or without arson, much less often black and white with or without arson), expressive dark round eyes and long dangling ears. Strong, well built, physically fit. I need a lot of traffic. A great passion for fetching, intelligence and readiness to cooperate with a human make him a perfect hunter and service dog.

Nature

English Springer Spaniel is a wonderful, energetic companion. It is durable, ready for trips in any weather and regardless of the season.

Skills

A great passion for fetching, intelligence and readiness to cooperate with a human make him a perfect hunter and service dog. That is why it is still used as a fluffer, but also as a hunter.

He also often works in the police or border guards – as a hunting and special dog: for detecting drugs or explosives. At work, he is tireless and full of enthusiasm. You can successfully play dog ​​sports with him – agility or frisbee. It will also be a good therapist.

English springer spaniel. Training and education

Of course, like any other dog, this one can also cause problems. His hunting instincts make him happy to chase birds. Therefore, from a young age, you should train with him to call. He needs a lot of movement, and the runaway can destroy anything that gets in his teeth. It can also be unruly – especially during puberty, it often checks how much it can afford. You must then follow the instructions consistently.

However, it should be remembered that this dog is mentally sensitive, therefore it requires positive training methods. And it is easy to motivate him: with a ball, a treat (he is a treat!) Or joyful encouragement and praise. Springer is very sensitive to your moods and when he is angry with him, he feels stressed and unhappy.

Who is this race for?

It is simply a dream companion for the whole family. He learns quickly and willingly and is attached to all household members – he even carries out the instructions of older children. His cheerful disposition makes him laugh even the biggest bleak …

The gentleness of this breed makes him unsuitable for a defender – admittedly an alarming bark when something disturbs him – but nothing more. Importantly, he is not clamor. He can live both in the countryside and in the city. It adapts well to various conditions, as long as it has movement, occupation and close contact with people.

English springer spaniel. Advantages and disadvantages

Disadvantages

• requires a lot of movement and attachment
• sometimes unruly
• hunting instinct makes it possible to chase birds

Advantages

• gentle to people and animals
• easy to lay
• generally healthy and resilient

English springer spaniel. Health

The breed enjoys good health. Genetic diseases are rarely affected by springers, including fucosidosis (a genetic test is available for its carrier), eye diseases and dysplasia. Therefore, it is best to buy a puppy from the parents tested.

Feeding

It is not demanding in terms of nutrition, it can eat dry or wet food of good quality or food prepared at home. When feeding, especially with moist food, it is worth assuming the so-called snoods, a type of chimney that prevents the ears from getting dirty in the bowl.

Care

In terms of care, springers are not too demanding. They are moderately dry and need regular brushing. Dead hair on the head, ears and neck is best trimmed. Before the exhibition, it is shortened at the front of the neck and on the feet, forming shapely “feet”. Of course, as with all ear flaps, regular checks require ears. Hair from the inside should be pulled out for better ventilation.

English springer spaniel. History

Spaniels are among the oldest hunting dogs. Already in the fourteenth century, the French Count Gaston de Foix in his “Livre de chasse” (“On the hunt”) wrote about a spaniel, which spewed birds and retrieved them from the water. The name “spaniel” comes according to one theory from the French word “espagnol” (Spanish), because these dogs come from the Iberian Peninsula.

According to another source, it is the former French verb “espanir” meaning flattening, falling to the ground – this is how the ancestors of pointer ancestors (Polish “legs”) used to be. These dogs were to reach the British Isles with the Romans. In the 16th century, John Caius describes British quadrupeds, including spaniels.

Initially, it was difficult to talk about specific breeds. Already in the nineteenth century, however, it was possible to divide the spaniels into springers (from “to spring” – to pronounce) and cockers (hunting for “woodcocks”, or woodcocks), but the division was not sharp. In general, cockers were smaller and springers were larger. Puppies from one litter were often assigned to a given breed based on their size and color (Welsh springer – red, English – in a different color).

In 1812, the Boughey family began breeding the first line of springers in the purity of the breed. In 1902, cockers and springers were officially recognized as separate breeds by the Kennel Club, and a year later they were assessed separately at the exhibition for the first time. In 1921 a British club was founded. In the mid-20th century, the division into working and exhibition lines could already be seen.

The breed enjoys great popularity in its homeland, as well as in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand as well as in the Scandinavian countries. One of the first people who brought springers to Poland before the war was Princess Izabella Radziwiłł. She had several wonderful representatives of the breed. Unfortunately, it is not known what happened to them during the war.

Re-interest in the breed in Poland appeared in the 1960s; at the turn of the 70s and 80s there was stagnation, but in the 90s the number of these dogs increased again. They raise quadrupeds from the exhibition line, but some of them hunt.

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English Springer Spaniel – VIII group FCI, section 2, reference number 125

• Origin: United Kingdom
• Character: contact dog, friendly, gentle towards people and animals, cheerful, persistent at work
• Size: dogs 48-54 cm, bitches 45-51 cm
• Weight: dogs 20-25 kg, bitches 18-22 kg
• Coat: close-fitting, straight, quite soft, waterproof; forms a moderate feather on the ears, stomach, back of the limbs and tail
• Color: two-colored: liver with white or black with white, or three-colored – as above, but with arson
• Lifespan: 12-15 years
• Vulnerability to training: high
• Activity: high – needs a lot of movement and activity
• Resistance/susceptibility to diseases: resistant; ears are susceptible to infection; genetic diseases are rare but fucosidosis (disorders of cell metabolism), eye diseases and dysplasia occur
• Possibility of buying a puppy: no problem buying

Interesting facts

The name “spaniel” was used to describe dogs used in hunting in Wales as early as 948!

In the 16th century, spaniels were divided into water (cocker spaniel) and land (springer spaniel also called starter spaniel) due to the work environment. Cocker spaniels as smaller ones were intended for hunting birds caught in the net, while springer spaniels were larger and scared the birds from the thickets.

Springer English Spaniel has the highest height among all British Spaniels.